- Victor Wembanyama is the -350 betting favorite to be the no. 1 overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft.
- Wembanyama’s current draft odds aren’t really that high but considering the next option in the odds board is the rest of the field at +450, it’s almost sure as day that he will go first in next year’s NBA Draft.
- The San Antonio Spurs and Utah Jazz are the betting favorites to land Wembanyama’s services.
Victor Wembanyana didn’t just make an impression on NBA scouts last week in Las Vegas. He also left a mark on the top basketball oddsmakers.
Wembanyana was already the consensus top pick of the 2023 NBA Draft as early as the first 2023 NBA Mock Draft Boards were released. But after two impressive performances in Sin City last week, Wembanyana is now listed as the -350 odds on favorite to be picked first overall in next year’s NBA Draft.
Now it’s not the French teenager’s odds that make him impressive. It’s the fact that right now, his next best competitor for the no. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft isn’t anyone. Rather, it’s the rest of the field. According to the top NBA sportsbooks, the rest of the field ( any other player ) is next at +450. The only other option in the current odds board is Scoot Henderson at +600 odds.
LeBron Says Wembanyama is More Like an Alien
LeBron’s high praise for Victor Wembanyama: “Everybody’s been a unicorn over the last few years, but he’s more like an alien.” pic.twitter.com/LgLellmp34
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) October 6, 2022
LeBron James is perhaps the most publicized and hyped non-NCAA player heading to the NBA Draft but even the King is all praises for the 18-year-old Frenchman. In a recent interview, King James refused to call Wembanyama a Unicorn, the adjective used to describe current European superstars and MVP winners Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic among others. Instead, Bron says Wembanyama is “more like an alien”.
Based on what we saw last week, it’s hard to argue with LeBron. Wembanyama played like a player not from this world. At 7-2 ( or 7-3, and still growing ), Wembanyama displayed skills never before seen from a player his size. Not to mention his age. In his first game last Tuesday, Wembanyama wowed the U.S. basketball world by displaying not just his agility as a growing seven-footer but also his guard-like handles and uncanny ability to knock down the three-point shot.
Scoot Henderson had a monster game for the G League Ignite team with 28 points, 5 rebounds, and 9 assists but Victor Wembanyama was out of this world with 37 points, on 11-20 shooting including 7-11 from deep while also grabbing four rebounds. As if that was not good enough, he went on to score another 36 points with 12 made free throws while grabbing 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 blocked shots. After the two-game series, the question changed from whether Wembanyama will go first in next year’s draft to who will be the lucky team to land his services.
Odds to Win the Victor Wembanyama Sweepstakes
Odds To Win The Victor Wembanyama Sweepstakes:
-Spurs: +600
-Jazz: +600
-Denver Broncos: +800
-Magic: +900 pic.twitter.com/UKzPy2iP22— PointsBet Sportsbook (@PointsBetUSA) October 7, 2022
According to NBA writer Adrian Wojnarowski, Wembanyama is the “singular greatest prospect in NBA history”. Woj went on to say in the debut of the NBA Countdown show that an NBA team president told him that whoever drafts Wembanyama could increase its value by $500 million. That’s saying a lot for an 18-year-old French teenager who has yet to play a single NBA regular season game.
NBA Draft procedure says that the team which wins the NBA Draft Lottery will pick first overall in the Draft proceedings. The team with the worst record during the regular season will have more ping-pong balls during the lottery but will not necessarily get the top pick. According to the NBA oddsmakers, the OKC Thunder have the lowest win total at 22.5. The San Antonio Spurs and Utah Jazz are next at 23.5 while the Indiana Pacers and Houston Rockets sit at 24.5.
According to PointsBet USA, the Spurs and Jazz have the shortest odds to land Webanyama at +600 odds. The Orlando Magic, which picked first this year and who have a win total of 27 wins, is next at +900. We skipped the next option, the Denver Broncos at +800 because it is an obvious satire. Although the Broncos could need a wide receiver with Wembanyama’s height to add to their 4 TD grabs so far this year, they play in the NFL. But kidding aside, Wembanyama could be so good and intriguing that we’re going to see some crazy odds boards in the coming months.
